Food prices

[trebor79]

I sometimes wonder if the supermarkets are cashing in on our current "cost of living" situation. We used to buy 2ltr Pepsi, mainly when it was on a multisave at ASDA. But then the price crept up and up until its now £2.20 per bottle. My kids then inform me that 8 bottles of 2ltr Pepsi are £12 in Costco, and similar in The Food Warehouse (part of Iceland). Now if Iceland and Costco have the buying power to negotiate lower prices for such items, you would have thought the likes of Asda, Sainsbury's and Tesco would be getting things a lot cheaper. Or maybe they are, but just not choosing to pass it on. It could rise to speculate that there is a cartel between the top three / four supermarkets as the price for a 2ltr pepsi is £2.20 - £2.25 in all of them. I wouldn't have thought that Costco / Iceland would be running this line as a loos leader....

Fizzy drinks are an absolute rip off anyway. The cost to manufacture that 2l bottle of pop? About 35p.

 

[david1212]

I'm just home from Aldi. Very noticeable that the price of numerous items including meat, bread, orange juice & toiletries is up 5 - 10% if not this week since my previous purchase within the last month. Within 12 months 20 - 30%.

 

[route101]

Burger King meal prices are near enough £10 now. Lukewarm burger with cold bacon, unmelted cheese (notice this more often now) and sloppy standards in Burger King.

 

[Sm5]

I'm just home from Aldi. Very noticeable that the price of numerous items including meat, bread, orange juice & toiletries is up 5 - 10% if not this week since my previous purchase within the last month. Within 12 months 20 - 30%.

Buy 1 large Orange instead, about 50p.

Squeeze it, you should get about 150ml.
Then dilute it!
You’ll get about 2l of water and still taste great, last upto a week (but you will drink it before that).

Best part is its not full of sugar, preservatives.

 

[yorksrob]

£1.15 for a can of coke zero in Sainsbury's now !

 

[kristiang85]

£1.15 for a can of coke zero in Sainsbury's now !

Multipacks don't seem to have gone up much for soft drinks, but indeed single cans and bottles are extortionate.

One thing to be aware of with supermarket drinks is that their fridge stuff is ofter waaay more expensive than the shelf ones- e.g. in M&S their cloudy lemonade is £1.40 for a 500ml bottle in the fridge, yet if you go to the back shelves you can get a 1l bottle of the same stuff for 95p.

 

[AM9]

Multipacks don't seem to have gone up much for soft drinks, but indeed single cans and bottles are extortionate.

One thing to be aware of with supermarket drinks is that their fridge stuff is ofter waaay more expensive than the shelf ones- e.g. in M&S their cloudy lemonade is £1.40 for a 500ml bottle in the fridge, yet if you go to the back shelves you can get a 1l bottle of the same stuff for 95p.

Which makes sense on two counts:

1) cooling it and keeping it cool costs the vendor​

2) pre-cooled bottles are for people out visiting/travelling rather than stocking a home with essentials​

so expect to pay more.

 

[yorksrob]

Multipacks don't seem to have gone up much for soft drinks, but indeed single cans and bottles are extortionate.

One thing to be aware of with supermarket drinks is that their fridge stuff is ofter waaay more expensive than the shelf ones- e.g. in M&S their cloudy lemonade is £1.40 for a 500ml bottle in the fridge, yet if you go to the back shelves you can get a 1l bottle of the same stuff for 95p.

Indeed, although this is quite a small Sainsbury's so there isn't the choice in this case.

The same drink was 95p a couple of weeks ago.

 

[malc-c]

Sherwood's Sweet and Sour cook in sauce... last week £1.90 a jar (same as Hompride). This week £2.25 a jar. Also where they used to do offers of two jars for £3.00 this hasn't been applied for months now. As for soft drinks we went to one of Iceland's food stores - 24x 330ml cans of Pepsi just £10 (41p per can)

 

[Kite159]

Multipacks don't seem to have gone up much for soft drinks, but indeed single cans and bottles are extortionate.

One thing to be aware of with supermarket drinks is that their fridge stuff is ofter waaay more expensive than the shelf ones- e.g. in M&S their cloudy lemonade is £1.40 for a 500ml bottle in the fridge, yet if you go to the back shelves you can get a 1l bottle of the same stuff for 95p.

That's been true for years, where bigger bottles of pop cost less than the smaller bottles (i.e £1 for a 1.25 litre bottle of Pepsi Max, nearly £2 for a 500ml bottle).

The nearest Tesco to work for me doesn't even have the little bottles chilled anymore due to getting rid of a chiller unit during a refit

 

[ChrisC]

Sherwood's Sweet and Sour cook in sauce... last week £1.90 a jar (same as Hompride). This week £2.25 a jar. Also where they used to do offers of two jars for £3.00 this hasn't been applied for months now. As for soft drinks we went to one of Iceland's food stores - 24x 330ml cans of Pepsi just £10 (41p per can)

Packs of 24 cans at Iceland are even less if you buy them as part of an online order. For anyone who likes Pepsi Max, Waitrose have 24 cans on special offer at the moment at only £8.

 

[kristiang85]

Which makes sense on two counts:

1) cooling it and keeping it cool costs the vendor​

2) pre-cooled bottles are for people out visiting/travelling rather than stocking a home with essentials​

so expect to pay more.

Well yes it's just a "convenience tax" really; I doubt the cooling has much to do with the price.

Same which chocolate bars - a single Snickers is something like 80-90p now, yet you can buy a multipack of 4 for £1.25. That's got nothing to do with cooling.

 

[Silver Cobra]

Packs of 24 cans at Iceland are even less if you buy them as part of an online order. For anyone who likes Pepsi Max, Waitrose have 24 cans on special offer at the moment at only £8.

I saw in Lidl today that they have 24 cans of Diet Pepsi for £8. I didn't spot if they also had Pepsi Max, but I imagine that would also be £8 if they do.

I admit to being a very tactical shopper with regards to checking the markdown areas in supermarkets these days with all the prices rising like they are. Yesterday I picked up a 24-pack of Irn Bru Xtra from the store I work in for only £3.75 (just under 16p per can) as the plastic packaging was somewhat torn; all 24 cans were still in the pack undamaged.

 

[philthetube]

wide variety of 24 packs available at Farm foods, some offers for 3x24 for £21

 

[Kite159]

It's been reported in the media on twitter that the price of a Tesco meal deal is going up to £3,40 for clubcard members, £3,90 for non members.

How much longer will that "4 cans of fizzy pop" for £1 last (the ones which are 50p each if you don't have a clubcard)?

 

[AM9]

Well yes it's just a "convenience tax" really; I doubt the cooling has much to do with the price.

Incrementally, no but cooling capacity in a shop is and expense in equipment and doubly so in floorspace, all of which has to be funded from profits. I would call it a 'laziness surcharge'.

 

[Baxenden Bank]

It's been reported in the media on twitter that the price of a Tesco meal deal is going up to £3,40 for clubcard members, £3,90 for non members.

How much longer will that "4 cans of fizzy pop" for £1 last (the ones which are 50p each if you don't have a clubcard)?

For fizzy pop, offer recently extended (from October 2022) to 28 February 2023.

Multipacks don't seem to have gone up much for soft drinks, but indeed single cans and bottles are extortionate.

One thing to be aware of with supermarket drinks is that their fridge stuff is ofter waaay more expensive than the shelf ones- e.g. in M&S their cloudy lemonade is £1.40 for a 500ml bottle in the fridge, yet if you go to the back shelves you can get a 1l bottle of the same stuff for 95p.

Which makes sense on two counts:

1) cooling it and keeping it cool costs the vendor​

2) pre-cooled bottles are for people out visiting/travelling rather than stocking a home with essentials​

so expect to pay more.

Well yes it's just a "convenience tax" really; I doubt the cooling has much to do with the price.

Same which chocolate bars - a single Snickers is something like 80-90p now, yet you can buy a multipack of 4 for £1.25. That's got nothing to do with cooling.

How much of that is a 'false price'. Having those items at high prices, as part of the meal deal, makes the deal seem much better value. For example charge £2.50 for a sandwich, 50p for chocolate and 50p for a can of pop and it totals £3.50 - so no discount at Tesco current prices, (50p reduction for clubcard holders). Charge the same £2.50 for a sandwich, £1.00 for chocolate and £1.00 for pop and it totals £4.50. All of a sudden the meal deal looks 'such good value'.

I regularly buy the Tesco meal deal but at the new price of £3.40 I might buy just the sandwich and add multipack chocolate/crisps and pour fruit juice from 1 litre carton. Depends whether the sandwich prices on their own increase as well.

 

[Mojo]

It's been reported in the media on twitter that the price of a Tesco meal deal is going up to £3,40 for clubcard members, £3,90 for non members.

I came here to post that. By far the best meal deal on the market for the price.

Anyone left doing one for £3 yet? I had a Poundland the other week for £2.50 but it was extremely limited with smaller sizes.

 

[takno]

I regularly buy the Tesco meal deal but at the new price of £3.40 I might buy just the sandwich and add multipack chocolate/crisps and pour fruit juice from 1 litre carton. Depends whether the sandwich prices on their own increase as well.

At 3.40 I'll probably go back to buying one of the premium sandwiches and having a coffee with it. Never really wanted the snack and drink anyway, but it seemed a shame not to get it

 

[route101]

Multipacks don't seem to have gone up much for soft drinks, but indeed single cans and bottles are extortionate.

One thing to be aware of with supermarket drinks is that their fridge stuff is ofter waaay more expensive than the shelf ones- e.g. in M&S their cloudy lemonade is £1.40 for a 500ml bottle in the fridge, yet if you go to the back shelves you can get a 1l bottle of the same stuff for 95p.

Yes, I always notice that. But such a hassle carrying around a big warm bottle of fizzy when out and about.

 

[ChrisC]

At 3.40 I'll probably go back to buying one of the premium sandwiches and having a coffee with it. Never really wanted the snack and drink anyway, but it seemed a shame not to get it

Good plan. I very rarely bother with meal deals these days. I’d much rather go to a local bakers of sandwich shop which make up their own rolls and then get a drink to go with it. If I can’t find a local bakers I choose somewhere like Greggs rather than supermarket sandwiches.

 

[davehsug]

Morrisons today, 10 pack Birdseye beefburgers. Last week £4.50 this week £5.85. That's 58.5p each for a bit of mince & some onion.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Morrisons today, 10 pack Birdseye beefburgers. Last week £4.50 this week £5.85. That's 58.5p each for a bit of mince & some onion.

Still £4.60 at Tesco, but as much as £6.00 at Iceland.

 

[malc-c]

Packs of 24 cans at Iceland are even less if you buy them as part of an online order. For anyone who likes Pepsi Max, Waitrose have 24 cans on special offer at the moment at only £8.

The Island store had stacks of 8x 2ltr bottle packs of diet pepsi, pepsi max, fanta, each £10, but all the regular Pepsi or Dr Peppers had sold out.

Again I noticed stack of empty shelves in ASDA, mostly the cheaper brands. Heinz tomato ketchup is too expensive, so we've been getting Mayor brand, 450g for 70p and it tastes OK. For the past two weeks the shelf has been empty, so this week I noticed Helmans tomato ketchup, 473g for £1, and I've just noticed it's even gluten free, which is normally an excuse to inflate the price. Not tasted it yet so no idea if it betters Mayors or comes close to Heinz.

 

[johnnychips]

Are there any brands that are ‘sacred’ to you, in that you just would not buy a supermarket ‘own brand’ instead, however cheaper?

Mine are:
Bisto gravy granules
Domestos bleach
Birdseye beef burgers (though normally I make my own)
Warburton’s white bread
and
Gold Blend instant coffee (there are ridiculous price variations for a big jar of this, so I always shop around).

 

[AM9]

Are there any brands that are ‘sacred’ to you, in that you just would not buy a supermarket ‘own brand’ instead, however cheaper?

Mine are:
Bisto gravy granules
Domestos bleach
Birdseye beef burgers (though normally I make my own)
Warburton’s white bread
and
Gold Blend instant coffee (there are ridiculous price variations for a big jar of this, so I always shop around).

For me I find most Waitrose 'Essential'' range products as good as branded products (indeed, better than all the other supermarkets non-prime ranges) but the exceptions include digestive biscuits, -only McBities qualify, and my wife objects to any baked beans other than Heinz.
I might add that the local Waitrose is about 300m away, don't much point going to Sainsbury's or Aldi for normal shopping as they are both over 2km away.

 

[GusB]

Are there any brands that are ‘sacred’ to you, in that you just would not buy a supermarket ‘own brand’ instead, however cheaper?

Mine are:
Bisto gravy granules
Domestos bleach
Birdseye beef burgers (though normally I make my own)
Warburton’s white bread
and
Gold Blend instant coffee (there are ridiculous price variations for a big jar of this, so I always shop around).

I don't have any "sacred" brands these days; I usually order the supermarket own brand equivalent of the mainstream brands, but because other people are doing the same, I often find that they'll substitute the "market leader" instead. You mention Bisto in your post; I never actually order Bisto, but when I last ordered Asda's own brand gravy granules it was substituted with Bisto. Similarly, I like Branson pickle (small chunk), but these days I just order the Asda brand instead, safe in the knowledge that it'll be out of stock on the day and they'll supply the brand that I really wanted in the first place!

 

[AM9]

I don't have any "sacred" brands these days; I usually order the supermarket own brand equivalent of the mainstream brands, but because other people are doing the same, I often find that they'll substitute the "market leader" instead. You mention Bisto in your post; I never actually order Bisto, but when I last ordered Asda's own brand gravy granules it was substituted with Bisto. Similarly, I like Branson pickle (small chunk), but these days I just order the Asda brand instead, safe in the knowledge that it'll be out of stock on the day and they'll supply the brand that I really wanted in the first place!

Many of the commodity products offered in own brand lines are actually produced on the same lines as the more expensive branded good. One that I've seen as obvious is the Tilda microwave rice packs. The packaging of the Waitrose item is identical (except for the printing of course) yet mormally sells for around half the price. Even the Aldi packs look identical.

 

[GusB]

Many of the commodity products offered in own brand lines are actually produced on the same lines as the more expensive branded good. One that I've seen as obvious is the Tilda microwave rice packs. The packaging of the Waitrose item is identical (except for the printing of course) yet mormally sells for around half the price. Even the Aldi packs look identical.

Indeed. I had a friend who worked in a shortbread factory not far from me, and he assured me that the stuff I bought in Safeway (not yesterday, obviously) was exactly the same as the product I'd buy in Fortnum and Mason! I was once accosted by a customer in an aisle of the former and she was livid that we didn't stock Walker's shortbread; I wasn't believed when I handed her a packet of own-brand stuff. Same recipe, same factory line, but a vastly different price. Brand snobs beware!

 

[Gloster]

I have very few sacred brands: many of my choices are made on ethical grounds and that tends to mean avoiding certain goods.

Stuff I do go for include:

Tiptree jam
Primula spread
Vimto Zero
Volvic mineral water
Branston Beans and Vegetarian Sausages.